The Kopernik Astronomical Society is hosting its 2013 Winter Star Party this coming Saturday (Feb. 23) from 6:00 p.m. to as late as people are likely to observe from the best equipped society observatory in CNY. A few with CNYO will be there for an evening of lectures, twizzlers, and what we hope will be clear skies. Directions to Kopernik (which also hosts year-long Friday Night observing sessions from March to November) are provided below:
View Larger Map
Event details are reproduced below. But see the Kopernik website for all of the event information!
Winter Star Party
Featuring NASA Scientist Michelle Thaller!
Saturday, February 23, 2013
6:00 PM – Members-Only Reception (light refreshments provided)
KOSC Members are invited to attend this informal reception to meet other members, get some early views through the telescopes (weather permitting), and kick off the Winter Star Party!
6:30 PM – Doors Open to the Public
Enjoy telescope observing (if clear) or tours (if cloudy). Take a tour through part of our galaxy with GeoWall, our special 3D projection system. Kids get to make and take home their own miniature Jupiter model.
7:00 PM – Comet Preview 2013
Roy Williams, KOSC – Enjoy a short presentation about two comets heading this way and learn how to get ready to observe these rare heavenly sights. See a comet made right in front of your eyes!
7:30 PM – Mikolaj Kopernik Birthday Celebration
Polish astronomer and mathematician Mikolaj Kopernik, known in English as Nicolaus Copernicus, was born February 19, 1473. Help us celebrate his 540th birthday with cake and special Polish desserts.
8:00 PM – Things That Go Bump in the Dark
Dr. Michelle Thaller, NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center – Astronomers think that everything we see in the universe makes up less than 4% of what actually is in the universe. How could this be? Is regular matter really such a small part of the universe? Newly discovered dark matter and dark energy are seriously mysterious things, however, experts are getting better at detecting and mapping both. What they are finding out is astonishing. These dark matter maps raise questions about the entire history of the universe, including how galaxies, stars, and planets formed in the first place. Dark energy may determine the fate of all matter, dark or otherwise, that exists.
Come find out about these things that go bump in the dark!
Click on the image for the event PDF
A star party is a gathering of amateur astronomers for the purpose of observing the sky. Kopernik’s annual Winter Star Party tradition continues this year and you are invited! At 7 p.m. Fr. George Coyne SJ PhD, Director-Emeritus of the Vatican Observatory, will present a talk about Nicholas Copernicus (aka Mikolaj Kopernik) the namesake of the Kopernik Observatory.
